


On Vulcan Exceptionalism

by TomFooleryPrime



Series: Musings and Analysis of the Star Trek Fandom [7]
Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Boring Characters, Essays, Exceptionalism, Fanon, Gen, Meta, Non-fic, Vulcan, Vulcan Culture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-18
Updated: 2017-12-18
Packaged: 2019-02-16 18:03:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13059273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TomFooleryPrime/pseuds/TomFooleryPrime
Summary: Star Trek fanon is saturated with stories and artwork featuring exceptional Vulcan talent. In almost every fan fiction I’ve ever read featuring a Vulcan character, Vulcans are assigned almost supernatural genius. I'm of the opinion that this makes regular Vulcans look bad.Sometimes I ramble ontumblr. Someone recommended posting some of my essays here.





	On Vulcan Exceptionalism

_Star Trek_ fanon is saturated with stories and artwork featuring exceptional Vulcan talent. In almost every fan fiction I’ve ever read featuring a Vulcan character, Vulcans are assigned almost supernatural genius. 

Common things I see are the notion that Vulcans can look at a wall and visually measure its length down to the picometer, which is pretty useless, all things considered. Another popular theory is that Vulcans have perfect eidetic memories, _so_ perfect in fact that Spock can recall the ingredient list from the bottle of shellac he uses to tame that elegant Vulcan coif, simply because he read it once when he was nine years old. 

And of course, all Vulcans have mad math and science skills that render them capable of calculating probabilities in their heads that would take a team of human actuaries months to even guess at.

> _Ok, so perhaps this one has some basis in canon._

Other notorious themes are that they studied at the Vulcan Science Academy, which is supposed to be a prestigious institution, or that they have half a dozen advanced degrees in virtually every academic discipline, because you know, once you have a degree in astrophysics, you might as well get another degree in linguistics. And of course, they’re all skilled in martial arts, athletics, philosophy, and survival. And some are even celebrated diplomats on top of it all. 

It’s like Vulcans are Stephen Hawking, Steven Seagal (sans mullet), Rain Man, René Descartes, Henry Kissinger, and Bear Grylls all rolled into one. Seriously, how many humans could go to Oxford, win a Nobel Prize in physics, could hold their own in a ring against Manny Pacquiao, and bring about peace in the Middle East? 

Vulcans are the ultimate Mary Sues, but instead of facing widespread derision, which is the usual fate of such characters, they’re put up on pedestals and idolized. I have a theory this is why some people hate Michael Burnham in the new _Star Trek: Discovery_ series—she’s a human who acts Vulcan thanks to her unusual upbringing. We expect Vulcans to be perfect, but we refuse to forgive any human who exhibits similar characteristics.

> _Would pointed ears have made Wesley Crusher less annoying?_

But _are_ all Vulcans exceptional? The three Vulcans we’re most familiar with—Spock, Tuvok, and T’Pol—probably aren’t a great representation of all Vulcans. First of all, they make up a pretty tiny sample size, and secondly, they represent a highly skewed sample. All three of them are Starfleet officers (T’Pol _did_ join eventually) which suggests they have personalities compatible with interspecies interactions, space exploration, military-type discipline, and science. So, to assume all Vulcans are like these three would be akin to interviewing three U.S. astronauts and assuming they represent the average human.

So, where are all the Vulcan ditch diggers? The janitors and construction workers? The pizza delivery drivers and waitresses and the piano tuners? Where are all the Vulcans who consistently disappoint their parents with bad grades, failed marriages, and lackluster life choices? I would argue that they _do_ exist, but because they don’t make for really interesting storytelling, we aren’t told about them. 

But realistically, there _have_ to be Vulcans who just punch a clock, pay their bills, settle down with a partner, maybe have a few kids, and grasp at assigning deeper meaning to their lives before dying, just like 99.9% of humanity. A society exclusively made up of badass savants would be doomed to fail because they’d literally be drowning in their own shit for lack of sanitation workers. It takes all kinds to make the gears of civilization turn—from genius scientists and diplomats to flute players and farmers—and just because they aren’t all forging peace with the Klingons or enhancing warp drives doesn’t mean they’re failures or don’t lead meaningful lives.  

> _I would admire the hell out of a Vulcan who chases his dreams._

Not all of them can be like Spock. It’s _ok_ to be average: most of us are. That’s the whole point of being average. And if my understanding of infinite diversity in infinite combinations is correct, I think Vulcans would agree with me. 


End file.
